In this article, you will learn
- which prerequisites are required for this Fixup, and
- how to apply this Fixup.
1. Introduction
The Fixup Add Background is available in the Workflow. The purpose of this Fixup is to eliminate transparent areas in the background and replace them with a white background.
2. General
The Fixup Add Background can be used to insert a white background to remove transparent areas. Please note, however, that the white background is not created as a "Spot Color white“ – only a 0/0/0/0 CMYK background color is added.
Use this Fixup to ensure that there is no transparent area in the print file. This helps you to use subsequent Fixups such as "Create Spot Color Separation depending on Total Ink Coverage" or "Create Spot Color Separation to Printed Objects" in a controllable manner.
You can find this Fixup on the tab Data Preparation of an Article, Order or Production Job by:
- entering the name of the Fixup in the area Filter,
- activating the option Page in the area Category,
- activating the option Add and Fill in the area Action,
- activating the option Background in the area Property.
3. Description
This Fixup can be used to add a white (opaque) background for the selected PageBox. The white (opaque) background is not created as a Spot Color but in CMYK.
3.1. Prerequisites and Functionality
For the Fixup to perform as intended, the following requirements must be met:
- The file has transparent areas. These transparent areas can be displayed by activating the option "Show transparency grid" in the Print Item Editor.
Figure 1: The dialog of the Fixup Add Background
To add a background select from the following options:
- Add white background to [1] – in the selection menu, select the PageBox for which to insert an opaque background. The following options are available:
- ArtBox – the background is drawn up to the ArtBox.
- BleedBox – the background is drawn up to the Bleed.
- TrimBox – the background is drawn up to the TrimBox.
- CropBox – the background is drawn up to the CropBox.
- MediaBox – the background is drawn up to the MediaBox.
- Variable Content [2] – for Variable Content [2], select the desired placeholder – Database Field or User-defined Field – from which the value for the PageBox to be selected should be retrieved. The following values must be found in the selected field for the selection to be carried out:
ArtB
- Bleed
BTrimBCropBMediaB
Figure 2: Values in the selected field for the option Add Background for
3.2. Before/After
To experiment with this function, refer to the sample file "Sample_Add Background.pdf". The background of this Print Item is transparent.
After applying the Fixup, the file "Sample_Add Background_End.pdf" is created. Here the opaque background has been drawn in.
Figure 3: Left: Original file with transparent background – opened in the Print Item Editor; Right: Edited file where the opaque background was drawn
Article update: Workflow 1.20.0 – 03/2025